Woof Of Nepotism

Mahatma Gandhi often used to quote the Vedantic thou­ght of Vasudhaiva Kutumba­kam that envisioned the ent­ire mankind as one family. Seventeen years after his death in 1948, up north of a divided India, Jammu and Kashmir got its Khadi, Village and Industries Board. A statutory body that strives to nurture village artisans, the KVIB conceptu­ally sustains the lofty movement the apostle of non-violence had begun in 1918. A cent­ury later, the KVIB in this border-state is weaving a fabric soiled by widespread allegations of corruption stee­ped in nepotism.

The Khadi board in J&K has spun a contorted interpretation to the Upani­shad line that had always inspired the Father of the Nation. Of late, the KVIB is among the state바카라�s enterprises being peopled by next of kin of chief minister Mehbooba Mufti. With every passing day, it바카라�s all about harmonising the household바카라�in a spirit antithetical to the Mahatma바카라�s.

In fact, till last month, the KVIB has been largely unfamiliar to many in J&K. Then, on February 20, the board came up with a list of candidates that it had just recruited for various positions. That opened the Pandora바카라�s Box for the ruling PDP, what with the KVIB being accused of flouting rules to accommodate a close relation of the CM and other relatives of the party바카라�s leaders.

To be sure, the state바카라�s 1965-founded KVIB hasn바카라�t been in the best of shape for half-a-decade now. The latest Economic Sur­vey shows a slide in the board바카라�s sales as well as job generation at the grassroots since 2014. Yet, the KVIB, tasked with the promotion of khadi and other village industries, has put no bar on one process: recruitment.

Sixteen months ago, the KVIB had advertised app­lications for 34 posts. This January, it conducted the interviews after a written examination by an external agency. Among those selected was Mehbooba바카라�s 37-year-old cousin Syed Aroot Madni, who is son of the PDP바카라�s powerful vice-­president Sartaj Madni.

The Opposition says he doesn바카라�t have the qualification required for the job. The National Conference (NC) also came out with a list of children of leaders of the ruling PDP-BJP coalition selected to the Integrated Child Develop­ment Sch­eme and other departme­nts besides the Jammu and Kashmir Bank. It acc­used Mehbooba바카라�s minister-­bro­ther Tas­sa­duq Mufti, who holds the tourism portfolio, of asking for a bribe from a senior official. NC state spokesperson Junaid Azim Mattu alleges he has got the tape of a telephone talk, where ano­ther 바카라�very senior bur­eaucrat바카라� directly implicates 바카라�the CM바카라�s brother바카라� in a multi­crore scam.

Aroot바카라�s selection has inv­ited criticism also from the candidates who didn바카라�t clear the job interview. They allege foul play, citing that 18 candidates were shortlisted for the single post, against the set norm of 3:1 or 5:1. The mark-allocation model for the exam segments (test, interview and job experience) was tweaked, they claim. As criticism surged amid a spurt in youth unemployment, the government has promised a high-level inquiry. The board denies malpractice. The proceedings were 바카라�impartial바카라�, according to KVIB vice-chairman Peerzada Mansoor, who is general secretary of the PDP, which came into the power three years ago to provide J&K people a 바카라�political healing touch바카라� and corruption-free administration.

Today, a chunk of the state바카라�s 27 PSUs are sick, and smack of cronyism. PDP candidates, defeated in polls, run the show as vice-­chairmen: Rafi Ahmad Mir (J&K Tourism Development Corporation) and Nizam-ud-Din Bhat (Handloom Deve­lopment Corporation). The BJP바카라�s Khalid Jehangir is vice-chairman of J&K Proje­cts Construction Corporation.

The NC alleges the ruling party is 바카라�eff­ectively run, as expected바카라� by the families of the CM and her uncle along with a few power-brokers close to them. 바카라�These are experts in corruption with insignificant political credentials and credibility,바카라� says Mattu. 바카라�They decide on big projects, high-level transfers, allotment of permissions for buildings as well as fudging of recruitment processes. This entire nexus has now completely taken over the party.바카라� Adds former MP Tariq Hameed Karra, now with the Congress: 바카라�The PDP is today doing everything it opposed once.바카라�

The PDP바카라�s Naeem Akhtar, who is government spokesman, says the NC had during Farooq Abdullah바카라�s CM tenure made over a lakh back-door recruitments from 1996 to 2002, while his son Omar also created new designations in the upper echelons of the government. Akhtar바카라�s party colleague, PDP youth leader Waheed-ur-Rehman Parra, says tongue-in-cheek that it is 바카라�good to see youth showing interest in transparency바카라� over job recruitment. 바카라�It only strengths faith in system and expectations on leadership,바카라� he adds.

All the same, the PDP has also leaders who are worried about the party바카라�s image. 바카라�Whether or not the allegations get pro­ven, they hint at poor public perception,바카라� says a functionary of the ruling party.

By Naseer Ganai in Srinagar